Ask and answer toy

ABSTRACT

A phonograph toy with a pointer wheel that can be turned so that a pointer thereon points to a picture that represents a question, and which automatically selects a record groove that asks the question when the phonograph is played. The pointer can be slid on the wheel to uncover a picture that represents the answer to the question, and the pointer then also selects another record groove that answers the question. The record is a disc with leadin groove portions spaced thereabout, and the particular groove that will be played is determined by the rotational position at which the disc stops during winding of a spring prior to playing. As the disc record rotates in reverse during spring winding, it rotates an index member with a helical ramp. The rotating helical ramp raises and then drives a moveable stop so the stop can contact another stop on the pointer and prevent any further reverse record rotation. During forward record rotation, when a groove is played, the ramp lowers the moveable stop so it is clear of the pointer stop.

United States Patent Folson et a1.

ASK AND ANSWER TOY lnventors zl' lenry J F o1son, Redondo Beach,

Calif.; William T. Hosokawa, Pasadena. Calif.; William B. Pester, PalosVerdes, Ca1if.; Irwin C. Poter, Quinter, Kans. v

Assignee: Mattel, Inc., Hawthorne, Calif.

Filed: April 8, 1971 Appl. No.: 132,468

U.S. Cl. ..35/8 A, 274/1 A Int. Cl. ..G09b 3/00 Field of Search ..35/8A, 35 C; 274/1 A References Cited UNlTED STATES PATENTS PrimaryExaminer-Wm. H. Grieb Attorney-Seymour A. Scholnick [57] ABSTRACT Aphonograph toy with a pointer wheel that can be turned so that a pointerthereon points to a picture that represents a question, and whichautomatically selects a record groove that asks the question when thephonograph is played. The pointer can be slid on the wheel to uncover apicture that represents the answer to the question, and the pointer thenalso selects another record groove that answers the question. The recordis a disc with leadin groove portions spaced thereabout, and theparticular groove that will be played is determined by the rotationalposition at which the disc stops during winding of a spring prior toplaying. As the disc record rotates in reverse during spring winding, itrotates an index member with a helical ramp. The rotating helical rampraises and then drives a moveable stop so the stop can contact anotherstop on the pointer and prevent any further reverse record rotation.During forward record rotation, when a groove is played, the ramp lowersthe moveable stop so it is clear of the pointer stop.

1 1 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures ASK AND ANSWER TOY BACKGROUND OF THEINVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to toyphonographs.

2. Description of the Prior Art Entertaining toy phonographs have beenavailable which enable a child to rotate a pointer to any one of anumber of pictures, and which selects a record track corresponding tothe picture and plays it when a string is pulled and released. Evengreater entertainment and educational value could be obtained from aphonograph toy if it allowed a child to visually select and then play arecording asking a question and then visually indicated and played arecording which gave the answer. In order for such a toy to besuccessful, it is necessary that the questions and answers be selectablein a natural manner, so that the toy can be operated without detailedinstructions to a child, and that the toy mechanism be as simple aspossible to enable its production at low cost.

OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present inventionis to provide a toy phonograph which enables a selection of pairs ofvisual markings and corresponding pairs of sound tracks in a simple andnatural manner.

Another object is to provide a toy phonograph of simple constructionwhich enables a child to simultaneously select a marking indicating aquestion and a sound track which asks the question, and to then select,in a natural manner, both a marking which indicates the answer to thequestion and a sound track that answers the question.

In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, a toyphonograph is provided which enables a child to select questions andanswers both visually and audibly in a natural manner. The toy includestwo rings of markings, the outer ring indicating the subject matter ofquestions and the inner ring indicating the subject matter of theanswers. A pointer can be rotated to select any question marking and canbe radially slid to uncover the corresponding answer marking. Thephonograph includes a disc record with numerous interleaved spiralgrooves that are played when a child pulls a draw string and releasesit. The particular groove that is played is determined by the rotationaland radial position of the pointer, so that the sounds match thequestion or answer which the pointer is indicating The record is playedby pulling a string that rotates a record-supporting turntable in areverse direction to wind up a spring. The string is then released toallow the stylus of a tone arm to engage the record, while the springrotates the turntable in a forward direction. The record grooves havecircumferentially based leadin portions, and the groove which isselected is determined by the position at which the record stops whenrotating in reverse. In order to select a particular groove, the pointercarries a pair of stops, and the turntable carries an index member thatraises a drag bar into a position to contact one of the pointer stops asthe turntable rotates in reverse. The index member has a helical rampthat raises the drag bar to engage a pointer stop during reverseturntable rotation. The helical ramp lowers the drag bar during forwardturntable rotation, so that the drag bar is clear of the pointer stop.

The novel features of the invention are set forth with particularity inthe appended claims. The invention will be best understood from thefollowing description when read in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERREDEMBODIMENT FIG. 1 illustrates a phonograph toy which asks and answersquestions on a particular subject, such as where different peoples andanimals live. The toy includes a housing 10 with a ring-shaped visualmember 12 that is divided into ten sectors. Each sector contains a wordand picture that represents the subject matter of the question. Forexample, the sector carries the word Eskimo and the picture of anEskimo, to represent the question, Where does an Eskimo live When achild pulls and then releases the pull ring 16 at the end of adrawstring 18, the toy plays a recording such as, Do you know where anEskimo lives? If a child then slides a pointer 20 in the direction ofarrow 22, he uncovers another marking area 14A which contains the wordIgloo and a picture of an igloo, to represent the answer to thequestion. If the child now pulls and releases the pull ring 16, the toyplays a recording such as, An Eskimo lives in an igloo made of ice andsnow. The pointer 20 is slidably mounted on a pointer wheel 24 that canbe rotated in the direction of arrow F to point to any of the other tensectors of the visual member 12. The recording which is played wheneverthe pull ring 16 is pulled, always represents the question or answerthat is visually indicated by the markings to which the pointer 20 ispointing.

FIG. 2 illustrates details of the mechanism which selects a pair ofrecordings in accordance with the rotational position of the pointerwheel 24, and which alternately selects the question or answer recordingin accordance with the radial position of the pointer 20 on the wheel.The mechanism includes rotatably mounted on the housing 10. When theturntable 30 rotates in a forward direction (clockwise when seen fromabove) the stylus 32 of a tone arm 34 engages a groove in the record 28to play a recording. The sounds picked up by the stylus are amplified bya speaker cone assembly 35 to make them clearly audible.

A playing cycle begins when the child pulls on the drawstring 18 tounwind the string from a sheave 36. The sheave 36, which is rotatablymounted coaxial with the turntable 30, then rotates in reverse asindicated by arrow R. As the sheave 36 rotates in reverse, it winds aspring 37 that will later drive the turntable during playing of therecord. The sheave 36 carries a friction plate 38 which bears against asurface 40 of the turntable to urge the turntable to rotate in reversewith the sheave. As the turntable 30 rotates in reverse, an index member42 fixed to the turntable drives a drag member 44 in reverse and alsocauses the drag member to wobble. As a result, a stop 46 of the dragmember 44 is raised from the level indicated at 46a to the level shownin full lines at 46. The stop 46 is then also rotated in reverse. Soonafter the raised drag member 46 begins rotating in reverse, it hits oneof two pointer stops 48 or 50 that are fixed to the pointer 20.

When the drag stop 46 hits one of the pointer stops 48 or 50, it can nolonger rotate in reverse. The drag stop 46 also prevents the turntable30 and the record 28 thereon from rotating any further in reverse. Thus,when the drawstring 18 is pulled to wind the spring, the turntable andrecord 28 begin rotating in reverse but stop at a position determined bythe location of one of the stops 48 or 50 on the pointer 20. Theparticular record track which will be played when the record beginsrotating in a forward direction is determined by the position at whichthe record stops.

FIG. 6 illustrates the record 28 and the twenty spiral grooves Gtherein. The grooves are interleaved and have leadin portions 54eircumferentially spaced about the record. During pulling of thedrawstring 18, the tonearm stylus 32 is lifted off the record and movedto a position near its periphery. When the drawstring is released, thestylus moves down against the record and enters the leadin portion 54 ofone of the twenty record grooves. As the turntable is rotated in aforward direction, the stylus continues the following along theparticular groove whose leadin portion it has entered, and to play thesounds recorded in that groove.

The particular leadin portion which the stylus will enter depends uponthe rotational position of the record as the stylus decends upon it. Therotational position of the record is determined by the rotationalposition of the particular pointer stop 48 or 50 which stops reverserotation of the turntable and record as the drawstring is pulled. As thepointer is turned to point to a different picture, the two stops 48 and50 thereon rotate about the housing and move the pointer stops 48 and 50accordingly. Only one of the stops 48 or 50 is in a position to contactthe drag member stop 46. The particular pointer stop 48 or 50 which cancontact the drag member stop is determined by the radial position of thepointer 20, that is, whether it is shifted radially outwardly to pointto a question marking or shifted inwardly to point to an answer marking.

FIG. 4 illustrates the construction of the index member 42, which isfixed to the turntable 30, and of the drag member 44. The drag member 44can rotate about the same axis as the turntable 30 and can also wobbleabout this axis of rotation, although it cannot shift radially acrossthis axis. The drag member is coupled to the index member in a fashionwhich permits one arm 56, which carries the drag stop 46, to move up ordown the spiral slope on the index member 42. The arm 58 has a frictionpad 60 that bears against a drag ring 62 formed in the housing 10 of thetoy, primarily by gravity forces (when the phonograph is oriented withthe visual member 12 facing up). Thus, the drag member 44 resistsrotation, but can be forced to rotate.

The indexing member 44 has two eircumferentially spaced driving surfaces64 and 66 which can contact the arm 56 of the drag member to force thedrag member to rotate. The indexing member also has a helical or rampportion 70 extending between the two driving surfaces 64, 66, and thedrag arm 56 is engaged with this ramp portion. When the indexing memberrotates in the reverse direction indicated by arrow R, but before thedrive surface 64 contacts the drag arm 56, the arm 56 moves up the rampportion 70 while the drag member 44 is stationary. Accordingly, the stop46 moves upwardly and into a position to contact one of the pointerstops 48, 50. When the indexing member has rotated far enough inreverse, the driving surface 64 contacts the drag arm 56 and thereafterdrives the drag member 44 in reverse. Such reverse rotation continuesuntil the drag stop 46 contacts one of the pointer stops 48, 50. Then,the drag stop 46 can no longer rotate in reverse, and it prevents thedriving surface 64 and indexing member 42 from rotating in reverse. Thisalso stops the turntable and record from rotating any further inreverse. A child can continue to pull out the drawstring, however, tocontinue winding the spring.

When a child releases the drawstring to allow the spring to rotate theturntable in the forward direction, as indicated by the arrow F, theturntable and indexing arm 42 immediately begin rotating in the forwarddirection. However, the drag member 44 does not immediately beginrotating, because the friction pad 60 which contacts the drag ring 62resists such rotation. Only after the indexing member 42 has rotatedabout and the driving surface 66 contacts the drag arm 56, does the dragmember 44 begin to rotate in the forward direction. During such 120rotation of the indexing member, the drag arm 56 moves down the helicalramp 70. Thus, when the driving surface 66 begins rotating, the drag arm56, the stop 46 thereon has moved down and therefore out of the way ofthe pointer stops 48, 50. As a result, the turntable can freely rotatein the forward direction without interference from the pointer stops.

FIG. 5 shows the location of the pointer stops, 48, 50 in relation tothe pointer 20. The pointer is illustrated in its outward position sothat it points towards a question region 140. As a result, one of thestops 48 which selects the record track that defines the question, is inthe path of the drag stop 46. The other pointer stop 50 which is used toselect the answer recording, is out of the path of the drag stop 46 andtherefore does not engage it. It can be seen that as the indexing member42 pushes the drag member 44 in reverse, the stop 48 determines theposition in which the turntable will cease to rotate in reverse.Therefore, the stop 48 selects the next recording to be played.

When the pointer member 20 is slid radially inwardly as indicated by thearrow 22, the stop 48 will be moved to a position out of the path of thedrag stop 46, while the other stop 50 will be moved to the position 50a.The answer stop 50a will then be in the path of the drag stop 46 andtherefore will determine the rotational position at which the turntablestops. As the pointer 20 slides between its radially outward andradially inward positions, the locations at which the turntable andrecord will stopadvances by 196 (or is delayed by 162). The leadinportions of the question groove and corresponding answer groove aresimiliarly spaced on the record by 196 (or 162).

A child can select a different pair of visual markings and pair ofrecord tracks defining a different question and answer by rotating thepointer wheel 24 on which the pointer is slideably mounted, in theclockwise or forward direction indicated by arrow F. In many cases, achild will not rotate the pointer far enough, and it will lie in betweentwo different pairs of markings. This could lead to confusion if arecord track is played which corresponds to a different question oranswer marking than the marking to which the pointer appears to bedirected. To prevent such confusion, the pointer wheel 24 is providedwith a positive latching mechanism which includes a resilient pawl whichcan engage ratchets 74 formed in the housing of the toy. There are tenratchets 74 uniformly spaced about the axis of rotation of the pointerwheel. When the drawstring is being pulled and the drag stop 46 engagesone of the pointer stops such as pointer stop 48, the entire pointerwheel 24 tends to rotate in reverse. In fact, the pointer wheel canrotate in reverse until the pawl 72 fixed thereto hits a ratchet 74.When the pawl 72 hits the ratchet, the pointer will be centered on aquestion-answer pair. The pawl 72 prevents further counterclockwise(reverse) rotation of the pointer wheel and prevents any furthercounterclockwise rotation of the turntable and record.

When a child decides to slide the pointer 20 between the question andanswer positions, he should slide the pointer radially as far as it willgo. To assure full radial sliding of the pointer, and therefore toassure that one of the pointer stops 48 or 50 can engage the drag stop,the mechanism is provided with an over-center spring 76. The spring 76has one end 78 fixed to the pointer wheel 24 and an opposite end 80fixed to the pointer 20. Once the pointer 20 has been slid slightly morethan half-way towards its opposite radial position, the spring 76 pushesit the rest of the way.

The phonograph mechanism employs several clutches to positively drive orto enable slippage of certain members when they are driven in certaindirections. As mentioned above, a plate clutch member 38 (FIG. 2)couples the string-receiving sheave 36 to the turntable 30 to rotate theturntable in reverse during windup. The plate clutch member 38 allowsslippage after the drag stop 46 engages a pointer stop 48, 50. Duringforward rotation of the turntable, the plate clutch may not be able tosupply sufficient torque to positively rotate the turntable.Accordingly, a roller clutch 82, shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, is providedwhich positively engages during forward rotation in the direction ofarrow F. Thus, as the spring drives the sheave 36 in the forwarddirection, there is positive driving of the turntable to assure recordrotation.

In order to maintain a constant speed of rotation of the turntable 30 inthe forward direction, when a record groove is being played, a governor84, shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, is provided which is coupled to theturntable. The coupling is through a belt 86 which extends around thegovernor shaft and around a clutch wheel 88 that can be driven by theturntable 30. As shown in FIG. 3, the clutch wheel 88 has three pawls 90that can engage ratchet teeth 92 formed in the turntable 30. The pawls90 are constructed of a resilient material and are biased against theratchets. However, when the turntable 30 rotates in the reversedirection as indicated by arrow R, the pawls 90 slip on the ratchets 92and the turntable does not drive the clutch wheel 88 and the governor isnot positively rotated. When the turntable rotates in the forwarddirection as indicated by arrow F, the pawls can positively engage theratchets 92 and the turntable can positively drive the clutch wheel 88and the governor 84. The turntable 30 may be provided with many ratchetteeth, such as thirteen, so that there is a minimal angular rotation ofthe turntable before a ratchet tooth engages a pawl 90 and the speed ofturntable rotation is well regulated.

Thus, the invention provides a phonograph toy which allows a child toselect visual markings and record tracks defining a question and answerpair by merely rotating a pointer wheel, and to alternately select thequestion and answer by sliding a pointer on the pointer wheel. When thechild plays the phonograph, by pulling and releasing the pull ring onthe drawstring, a record track is played which matches the markingindicated by the pointer. The phonograph mechanism employs an indexingmember with a helical ramp that engages a drag member with a stop. Theramp moves the drag stop into and out of position to engage a pointerstop, as the turntable rotates in reverse and in a forward direction,respectively. The mechanism is relatively simple, so that it can be massproduced at low cost. While the phonograph toy has been shown in anembodiment that allows the selection of pairs of subjects representing aquestion and an answer to the question, other pairs of matching subjectscan be utilized instead, wherein the record track does not directly aska question or provide an answer.

Although particular embodiments of the invention have been described andillustrated herein, it is recognized that modifications and variationsmay readily occur to those skilled in the art and, consequently, it isintended that the claims be interpreted to cover such modifications andequivalents.

What is being claimed is:

l. A phonograph toy comprising:

a housing;

a visual display mounted on said housing and containing spaced pairs ofmarkings;

pointer means for indicating particular markings, said pointer meansmovable relative to said display in a first manner to select a pair ofsaid markings and in a second manner to alternately indicate eachmarking of the selected pair;

a record within said housing having pairs of record tracks correspondingto said pairs of markings, each pair of said tracks including a firsttrack matching a first marking of the corresponding pair of markings anda second track matching a second marking of the corresponding pair ofmarkings; and

means responsive to the position of said pointer means relative to saiddisplay, for playing the record track which matches the markingindicated by said pointer means, whereby a child can easily select amarking pair and alternately play recordings corresponding to eachmarking of the pair with simple manipulations.

2. The phonograph toy described in claim 1 wherein:

said first marking of each pair visually indicates the subject matter ofa question and said second marking of the pair visually indicates thesubject matter of the answer to the question; and said first and saidsecond tracks of each pair contain recordings that respectively ask thequestion and answer it. 3. The phonograph toy described in claim 1wherein: said record has a face with interleaved spiral grooves, saidgrooves having circumferentially spaced leadin portions; and said meansresponsive to the relative position of said pointer means includes apivotally mounted tone arm having a stylus for playing said grooves,

a rotatably mounted turntable supporting said record to rotate it,

means for raising said tone arm stylus off said record and lowering itback thereon to fall into a leadin groove portion that lies under thestylus,

a drag stop coupled to said turntable,

first and second pointer stops mounted on said pointer means, saidpointer means mounted to rotate about said record and slidesubstantially radially relative to it, said pointer stops positioned onsaid pointer means to alternately move into position to engage said dragstop as said pointer means slides; and

means for successively rotating said turntable in a predeterminedreverse direction until said drag stop fully engages one of said pointerstops, lowering said stylus onto said record, and rotating saidturntable in a predetermined forward direction.

4. A phonograph toy comprising:

a housing having a ring-shaped area containing pairs ofcircumferentially spaced markings, the markings of each pairsubstantially radially spaced from each other;

a pointer assembly including a pointer wheel rotatably mounted on saidhousing and a pointer member slideably mounted on said pointer wheel toslide between first and second positions thereon, so that said pointermember moves adjacent to different pairs of markings as said wheelrotates and alternatively indicates different markings of the pair towhich it is adjacent as it is slid between said first and secondpositions on said wheel;

a record having a plurality of record tracks thereon, each trackmatching a different one of said markings;

tone arm means movable between positions to engage and disengage saidrecord tracks;

stop means coupled to said pointer member to be moved both when saidpointer member rotates with said pointer wheel and when it slides onsaid pointer wheel;

means responsive to the position of said stop means for directing saidtone arm means into engagement with the track which matches the markingindicated by said pointer member; and

means for moving said record relative to said tone arm means to play thetrack engaged by the tone arm means.

5. The phonograph toy described in claim 4 including:

a drag stop; and

means for coupling said drag stop to said record to move with it andengage said stop means; and wherein said record has a substantially flatface and is mounted to rotate about a predetermined axis, and saidrecord tracks form interleaved spiral grooves in said face with leadinportions circumferentially spaced about said axis; said means for movingsaid record includes means for urging said record to rotate in a firstdirection so that it rotates until said drag stop engages said stopmeans, and for rotating said record in a second direction opposite tosaid first direction; and said means for directing said tone arm meansincludes means moving said tone arm means against said recordsubstantially between rotation of said record in said first and seconddirections. 6. The phonograph toy described in claim 5 wherein: saidstop means includes a pair of stops positioned on said pointer memberfor alternate movement into the path of said drag stop. 7. Thephonograph toy described in claim 5 wherein: said means for couplingsaid drag stop to said record includes an index member fixed to saidrecord to rotate with it, said index member having a helical rampportion; and

a drag member mounted to rotate on said housing and wobble, at least inpart, about its axis of rotation, said drag member engaged with saidramp portion of said index member to wobble in response to rotationrelative to said index member, said drag stop being mounted on said dragmember to move into and out of the path of said stop means as said dragmember wobbles.

8. A phonograph toy comprising:

a housing;

a turntable assembly rotatably mounted on said housing, said turntableassembly including a record that has a plurality of interleaved spiralgrooves with leadin portions circumferentially spaced thereon, and saidturntable assembly also including an index member with a helical rampportion;

a drag member mounted to rotate on said housing while resisting suchrotation, and to permit wobbling of at least a portion of the dragmember about its axis of rotation, said drag member having a stop andsaid drag member engaged with said ramp portion of said index member towobble at least said portion thereof as said index member rotatesrelative to it;

said index member having a pair of driving surfaces for rotating saiddrag member in either of two opposite directions of rotation, saiddriving surfaces circumferentially spaced so that said drag member canmove up said ramp portion prior to engagement with the first drivingsurface and can move down the ramp portion prior to engagement with theother driving surface;

a manually movable selector member mounted on said housing and havingstop means positionable at different locations along the path of saidstop on said drag member when said drag member is at the top of saidramp;

means for alternately urging said turntable to rotate in said twoopposite directions; and

tone arm means for entering the leadin portion of a record groove whichlies at a position determined by said stop means on said selectormember.

9. The phonograph toy described in claim 8 wherein:

said selector member is mounted to rotate about the same axis as saidturntable and to slide substantially in a radial direction, and saidstop means inc'ludes a pair of stop members mounted on said selectormember to alternately move into the path of said stop on said dragmember.

10. The phonograph toy described in claim 8 wherein:

said selector member is mounted to rotate on said housing; and includingindexing means coupled to said selector member and defining a pluralityof circumferentially spaced positions for allowing rotation of saidselector member in a first direction and preventing rotation past thenearest of said circumferentially spaced positions in said seconddirection.

l l. A phonograph toy comprising:

a visual display containing spaced sets of markings;

pointer means for indicating particular markings, said pointer meansbeing movable relative to said display in a first manner to select aparticular set of said markings and in a second manner to alternatelyindicate each marking of the selected set;

a recorded message carrier means having sets of recorded messagescorresponding to said sets of markings, each set of said messagesincluding a first message matching a first marking of the correspondingset of markings and a second message matching a second marking of thecorresponding set of markings; and

means responsive to the position of said pointer means relative to saiddisplay, for playing the message which matches the marking indicated bysaid pointer means, whereby a child can easily select a marking set andalternately play recordings corresponding to each marking of the setwith simple manipulations.

1. A phonograph toy comprising: a housing; a visual display mounted onsaid housing and containing spaced pairs of markings; pointer means forindicating particular markings, said pointer means movable relative tosaid display in a first manner to select a pair of said markings and ina second manner to alternately indicate each marking of the selectedpair; a record within said housing having pairs of record trackscorresponding to said pairs of markings, each pair of said tracksincluding a first track matching a first marking of the correspondingpair of markings and a second track matching a second marking of thecorresponding pair of markings; and means responsive to the position ofsaid pointer means relative to said display, for playing the recordtrack which matches the marking indicated by said pointer means, wherebya child can easily select a marking pair and alternately play recordingscorresponding to each marking of the pair with simple manipulations. 2.The phonograph toy described in claim 1 wherein: said first marking ofeach pair visually indicates the subject matter of a question and saidsecond marking of the pair visually indicates the subject matter of theanswer to the question; and said first and said second tracks of eachpair contain recordings that respectively ask the question and answerit.
 3. The phonograph toy described in claim 1 wherein: said record hasa face with interleaved spiral grooves, said grooves havingcircumferentially spaced leadin portions; and said means responsive tothe relative position of said pointer means includes a pivotally mountedtone arm having a stylus for playing said grooves, a rotatably mountedturntable supporting said record to rotate it, means for raising saidtone arm stylus off said record and lowering it back thereon to fallinto a leadin groove portion that lies under the stylus, a drag stopcoupled to said turntable, first and second pointer stops mounted onsaid pointer means, said pointer means mounted to rotate about saidrecord and slide substantially radially relative to it, said pointerstops positioned on said pointer means to alternately move into positionto engage said drag stop as said pointer means slides; and means forsuccessively rotating said turntable in a predetermined reversedirection until said drag stop fully engages one of said pointer stops,lowering said stylus onto said record, and rotating said turntable in apredetermined forward direction.
 4. A phonograph toy comprising: ahousing having a ring-shaped area containing pairs of circumferentiallyspaced markings, the markings of each pair substantially radially spacedfrom each other; a pointer assembly including a pointer wheel rotatablymounted on said housing and a pointer member slideably mounted on saidpointer wheel to slide between first and second positions thereon, sothat said pointer member moves adjacent to different pairs of markingsas said wheel rotates and alternatively indicates different markings ofthe pair to which it is adJacent as it is slid between said first andsecond positions on said wheel; a record having a plurality of recordtracks thereon, each track matching a different one of said markings;tone arm means movable between positions to engage and disengage saidrecord tracks; stop means coupled to said pointer member to be movedboth when said pointer member rotates with said pointer wheel and whenit slides on said pointer wheel; means responsive to the position ofsaid stop means for directing said tone arm means into engagement withthe track which matches the marking indicated by said pointer member;and means for moving said record relative to said tone arm means to playthe track engaged by the tone arm means.
 5. The phonograph toy describedin claim 4 including: a drag stop; and means for coupling said drag stopto said record to move with it and engage said stop means; and whereinsaid record has a substantially flat face and is mounted to rotate abouta predetermined axis, and said record tracks form interleaved spiralgrooves in said face with leadin portions circumferentially spaced aboutsaid axis; said means for moving said record includes means for urgingsaid record to rotate in a first direction so that it rotates until saiddrag stop engages said stop means, and for rotating said record in asecond direction opposite to said first direction; and said means fordirecting said tone arm means includes means moving said tone arm meansagainst said record substantially between rotation of said record insaid first and second directions.
 6. The phonograph toy described inclaim 5 wherein: said stop means includes a pair of stops positioned onsaid pointer member for alternate movement into the path of said dragstop.
 7. The phonograph toy described in claim 5 wherein: said means forcoupling said drag stop to said record includes an index member fixed tosaid record to rotate with it, said index member having a helical rampportion; and a drag member mounted to rotate on said housing and wobble,at least in part, about its axis of rotation, said drag member engagedwith said ramp portion of said index member to wobble in response torotation relative to said index member, said drag stop being mounted onsaid drag member to move into and out of the path of said stop means assaid drag member wobbles.
 8. A phonograph toy comprising: a housing; aturntable assembly rotatably mounted on said housing, said turntableassembly including a record that has a plurality of interleaved spiralgrooves with leadin portions circumferentially spaced thereon, and saidturntable assembly also including an index member with a helical rampportion; a drag member mounted to rotate on said housing while resistingsuch rotation, and to permit wobbling of at least a portion of the dragmember about its axis of rotation, said drag member having a stop andsaid drag member engaged with said ramp portion of said index member towobble at least said portion thereof as said index member rotatesrelative to it; said index member having a pair of driving surfaces forrotating said drag member in either of two opposite directions ofrotation, said driving surfaces circumferentially spaced so that saiddrag member can move up said ramp portion prior to engagement with thefirst driving surface and can move down the ramp portion prior toengagement with the other driving surface; a manually movable selectormember mounted on said housing and having stop means positionable atdifferent locations along the path of said stop on said drag member whensaid drag member is at the top of said ramp; means for alternatelyurging said turntable to rotate in said two opposite directions; andtone arm means for entering the leadin portion of a record groove whichlies at a position determined by said stop means on said selectormember.
 9. The phonograph toy described in claim 8 wherein: sAidselector member is mounted to rotate about the same axis as saidturntable and to slide substantially in a radial direction, and saidstop means includes a pair of stop members mounted on said selectormember to alternately move into the path of said stop on said dragmember.
 10. The phonograph toy described in claim 8 wherein: saidselector member is mounted to rotate on said housing; and includingindexing means coupled to said selector member and defining a pluralityof circumferentially spaced positions for allowing rotation of saidselector member in a first direction and preventing rotation past thenearest of said circumferentially spaced positions in said seconddirection.
 11. A phonograph toy comprising: a visual display containingspaced sets of markings; pointer means for indicating particularmarkings, said pointer means being movable relative to said display in afirst manner to select a particular set of said markings and in a secondmanner to alternately indicate each marking of the selected set; arecorded message carrier means having sets of recorded messagescorresponding to said sets of markings, each set of said messagesincluding a first message matching a first marking of the correspondingset of markings and a second message matching a second marking of thecorresponding set of markings; and means responsive to the position ofsaid pointer means relative to said display, for playing the messagewhich matches the marking indicated by said pointer means, whereby achild can easily select a marking set and alternately play recordingscorresponding to each marking of the set with simple manipulations.